Growing Pains
by simsgal
Summary: Buffy has seriously got some growing to do, she's too competitive, sometimes rude, and a bit of a showoff. They still love her the same anyway, but most importantly she loves herself... or does she? "We're all grown up now, things are different. I can't handle it anymore." High School can really change you. ENDGAME JYRUS, ENDGAME MUFFY... Mainly Buffy. RATING WILL GO UP.
1. Chapter 1

"You've got a lot of growing to do."

Growing Pains

by simsgal

 **Rated T**

 **Hey yall it's me (: back with a story I actually plan to finish. Now… let me tell you right now, as of this moment, Andi Mack has GMW trembling in its boots. When it first came out I watched the Pilot and I was SHOOK when I found out Bex was Andi momma. My wig was gone. I recently got back into it since Cyrus came out (sis we been knew) and rewatched the whole series and got an idea for a story, so I typed some stuff up to see if y'all will like it. It's mostly about Buffy because I love love LOVE her like that's my SIS but Cyrus and Andi have their respective chapters as well. Rating will definitely go up because the characters are older and dealing with some real shit, and soon. Since the series is still ongoing there will be obvious inconsistencies between this story and the show, but it isn't an AU, but has minor alterations. Just ignore that because I will have to create new characters to mold this storyline and whatnot. As always, I do not own Andi Mack, Terri YOU DID THAT HONEY, now let's get it!**

chapter one:: Buffy

Buffy would really be anywhere else right now. Any other place but where she was currently sitting, in this hard desk covered in corny graffiti, in the cold classroom that gave her ugly goosebumps on her legs, which were revealed in a pair of pink Nike training shorts. She tapped her foot obnoxiously, glancing at the clock every few moments to see if time had moved any faster. Time seemed to move faster any other time, she would know about that, considering she held seven records for fastest girl times at Grant.

Buffy didn't like slow things. She stomped her foot, adjusting herself in the desk, and then did it again, making an audible noise apparently since her teacher glanced at her over the cliché and oversized spectacles perched on her nose. _Oops. God, when the hell will that freaking bell ring?_

She smiled meekly and sat up straight, remembering that the girl behind her was a chronic gum chewer and her hair sometimes got onto her desk. "Well, Ms. Discroll is there something you would like to share about _Animal Farm_?" The teacher asked facetiously, closing her own copy. Buffy's had been on the same page for the past fifteen minutes. She would read the same sentence, get bored, and have to reread it. She thinks this to herself but clears her throat and shakes her head.

"Buffy doesn't do much reading." A uniform hum of laughter falls from the students as Buffy rolls her deep eyes and doesn't dare look back at the voice.

"That'll be all, Mr. Chambers."the teacher chides him; The mentioned boy has a sly grin on his face as he peers at the spirals of curls two rows and closest to the window in front of him. He noticed it was where she sat the first day. He notices she clenched her fist, to his amusement, and he lets out a light chuckle before turning to look out the window.

Buffy is now agitated, her first tight and ready to yank up Martin Chambers by his shirt. _I swear I'll hit him_. She thinks this before shaking her head and attempting to cool down. Luckily for her, the bell finally chimes and the teacher releases an unnecessarily pent up breath as the students excitedly but carefully file our, a certain brunette in front of the line to escape the prison that held her captive for the past 6 hours. Most of the students were excited to go home, chattering about their weekend plans as they stood side by side, blocking the hallway in Buffy's eyes and annoying her even further. Her ears naturally dipped into people's conversations, a bad habit she picked up from her past of being an intentional eavesdropper.

"… _so she was like 'yeah, of course my period is late'. What did you expect ..."_

"… _I'm so over this damn class, I swear if it wrecks my GPA I'll…"_

" _Are we going to Gio's this weekend? His parents are out of town and…"_

Personally, they were all faceless people as far as the brunette was concerned, people that either irritated her or weren't really worth knowing for the sake of staying out of drama and staying focused on what really mattered: cross country, track and soccer in the spring, and then of course Cyrus Goodman and Andrea Mack. Her two best friends since the fifth grade, separated by nothing since then. They could handle anything together, and Buffy knew as long as she had them nothing could really go too wrong in her eyes. The former mentioned was standing at his locker, gathering his books to take home for the weekend and do his assignments like he always did. Cyrus barely noticed the mulatto come and stand next to him, but when he did he gave his classic grin that was timeless and had always been with him. It was boyish and friendly, but sincere. Buffy loved Cyrus' smile, especially since lately he hasn't been smiling as much.

"Hello, hello. Excited for the weekend? I know I am, I have a three page paper to write but after that I can start a new project. I'm sewing patches onto this jean jacket." Buffy nods in a pleased manner, remembering him mention Andi was teaching him how to do that.

"Sounds good to me, I'm just ready to get out of here. Still gonna visit me at work tomorrow?" Cyrus nods in an assured matter. "You don't seem so excited about that." She grins as he shakes his head.

"Oh—no, it's just I'm supposed to go visit Iris' mom in the hospital with her." Buffy isn't too upset by this but instead leans against the locker and crosses her arm respectfully.

"Issokay, you can just bring her. I'll give you a discount on the frozen yoguurrt!" She attempts to lure him in, her voice having a playful edge. Surely her boss wouldn't mind if she gave some friends a discount. She had been working at _Happy Spoon_ for about four months now. The dark featured boy gives a knowing smile to his best friend.

"Oh, Buffy you know I can't resist frozen yogurt… I'll think we'll do that, it'll probably cheer her up." It's silent for a while, but a comfortable silence as the halls level out and students are quickening their pace to not miss their bus, or to get home in general. "Her mom isn't doing too well. They think she has pneumonia now." This confirms Buffy's suspicions as she gives a sad and apologetic expression but the boy shrugs. "It's alright, Iris isn't too upset right now." His locker was now closed and a light jacket graced his shoulders that have broadened out a bit due to a growth spurt over the summer. He was now taller than Buffy, and had the ability to see right over her depending on her hairstyle, but sometimes some of those curls just got in his way anyway.

Regarding Iris, Buffy liked her a lot and wanted her mom to be okay. She thinks this to herself but doesn't say it. "Well, let's go home. You've got patches to sew." She puts a small but fit arm over his shoulder, the warm fabric of her jacket comforting him gently as they talked aimlessly about other things going on this weekend. Buffy knew all about not having your mother with you or away. The stress Iris felt right now is what she felt most of the time when her own mother was deployed, and the weekly letters barely sufficed for when she wanted to hug her, and smell her motherly smell that only she had and would always pacify her when she was upset.

For now, she would have to be pacified by the perfume in her room and the clothes that smelled like her lotion, sometimes she would take her mom's sweaters and sleep in them on the nights she cried and it felt like she was still right around the corner about to peek into Buffy's room. Whenever she did cry, anyway. Buffy hates crying. She hates when she cries anyway, it makes her feel weak and angry with herself.

Luckily, she hasn't felt that way in a while.

 **Xx**

"I'm home!" Buffy called this out to Bex and Andi, which is whom she spent most of her time with now. Since her dad has been working on cases more, she's spending much more time at the Mack household. Rebecca was still beautiful, her shiny dark hair now shorter and cropped at her shoulders but still vibrant, her face covered in warm and sincere laugh lines. No one could tell she has a sixteen year old daughter unless she told them so. Bex grinned and peeked her head out of the kitchen, the small apartment they once had was now upgraded to a quaint but nice 2 bedroom house. Cyrus also spoke, and they both slipped their shoes off and left their bags by the door.

"Hey Andi gang!" Bex greeted cheerfully, her small ponytail shaking behind her as she turned her head back to face her computer.

"Hey B." Buffy greeted Bex respectfully but comfortably, there was no way the young and vibrant mother was being called Mrs. _Anything_ by her daughter's friends.

"How was your day?" Cyrus asks his politely, grabbing his usual snack of peanut butter and apples from the fridge. Buffy is already going down the hall, already having eaten while the charismatic boy stays to talk with Bex about work.

She approached Andi's room, the door was closed but she heard music playing on the other side. She opened the door and smiled at the sight she saw. Andi was lying on the bed, her legs up and against the wall as she stared at the ceiling with a goofy smile on her face. Her springy hair was grown out now but still short, she preferred her hair short, and was only a bit shorter than her mom's. The thick sheet of black brushed across her bird-like shoulders as she turned and sat up to look at her best friend, they were complete opposites almost. Beatrice was tall, around five foot seven, with her café au lait resemblant skin holding a rosy hue these colder days. She was athletic and fit, her body deemed attractive by many as she picked up weight in all the right places, not that she paid attention to this. Andi was light olive, her skin seemed to glow sometimes but wasn't pale. She was short, standing higher than her grandmother but under her mother. She was small and petite, her body slim but her personality making up for everything.

Buffy was told she had a large personality as well, but hers was more outward and boisterous than Andi. Andi was more friendly, warm, and has a childish joviality about herself. They perfectly complimented the reserved and more quiet Cyrus, who had a slight stutter that arose when he was nervous and still turned red at certain embarrassing moments.

The mentioned boy steps into the room, leaving it cracked behind him as he ate his snack and sat in Andi's corner chair, his usual spot as the two girls took up the bed.

"Well you're all smiley… what's tea? Spill." Buffy asks, even though Andi was generally a positive and optimistic person the girl knew her best friend—and something else was up.

"Oh nothing, except that me and Jonah are most likely _definitely_ going to the pumpkin patch tonight!" Both girls squeal excitedly, but Cyrus gives a dejected expression. Every single year pumpkin patch was their thing. They made it a tradition since they were younger and ever since Jonah has been joining in on it, it wasn't the same to Cyrus. _And now it's only Andi and Jonah?_ "Oh don't worry, Cyrus. We can still go to the haunted house—or bake Halloween sugar cookies with Cece!" Andi, after noticing his face attempts to make him feel better. She didn't want either Buffy or Cyrus to feel like she was spending an unfair amount of time with Jonah. She stands from her bed, stretched; and reached under her bed for her sewing machine to set up on the floor. Smiling, Cyrus sprung up and went to the closet to retrieve Cristiano, Andi's old machine that was a little beat up but worked well enough for the lessons being given. Buffy took this as her cue to occupy herself with Andi's laptop, where she looked at new cleats and athletic socks to spend her paycheck on.

"Well that's cute, meanwhile I'm forever alone." The mulatto said feigning hurt; Cyrus and Andi share a knowing look before returning attention to their respective machines, Cristiano and Versailles. Both knew that Buffy had an extremely large amount of admirers, seemingly unknown to her. To Cyrus especially, other boys would talk about how cute Andi was or how _fine_ Buffy was, also saying other things that would cause him to roll his eyes at their misogynistic ideals or nasty desires. As perceptive as Buffy may seem, she had no idea what was going on when it came to boys, believe it or not. She knew how to brush off a boy, but she would never know that he liked her unless he explicitly told her… she wasn't good at picking up hints unless they were from her two best friends. She read them easily, sometimes too easily for their own comfort.

Andi on the other hand didn't know much about boys, and was too shy to even put them down sometimes. She's been on a few dates where she wishes she was somewhere else but didn't have the heart (or _balls_ as Buffy would say) to say no. This resulted in her going to the bathroom, dialing Cyrus, and faking sick until the reliable friend came to get her. The only boy consistently on her mind whose feelings she was quite sure about was Jonah Beck. Jonah started out as a small crush in middle school that only got bigger after interacting with him more and more each day. It was more drama than necessary for the Asian girl at the time, but she found each incident to be completely worth it because now she was his. They never really had a conversation about it but Jonah knew that he was with Andi and Andi knew that she was with Jonah. In their eyes, they were boyfriend and girlfriend.

As she sewed, Andrea thought about him, a smile gracing her face as she carefully eyed her partner's work to ensure neatness. "Iris is going to love this jacket." She gushed as Iris' boyfriend nodded.

"I hope so, she saw this jacket at the mall but of course I'm too broke to get it. Then I thought, 'My best friend literally makes her own clothes sometimes'." He recalled after the loud but comfortable humming of the sewing machine halted.

"That's so cute, Cyrus. I feel like the fact that you made makes it worth more than any _Gucci_ or _Fendi_." Buffy said in a touched manner. Andi thinks back to when she made Jonah that bracelet—he still has it too. He wears it some days, and on others he attaches it to his backpack. Sometimes Buffy or Cyrus will see him kiss the charm three times before starting his games or during tests. It was a bit worn, but still in a decent and sentimental condition, just how hany gift should be.

"Okay, so Buffy, what should I wear tonight?" Buffy squeals at this, already standing to go through the Asian girl's closet, the prissy side in her coming out.

"You should wear the orange turtleneck." Cyrus comments, eyes squinted in concentration as he lined up the denim fabric under the automatic needle. He was currently sewing on a _"love bites"_ patch. The curly haired girl nods and looks through the clothes, pulling out the mentioned sweater that would rival the pumpkins themselves at the patch.

"OOOh, yes, and that dark brown suspender dress." She says more to herself than the other two, looking intently for the said article of clothing. "Thanks for inviting us, by the way." She adds out of spite, but not necessarily angrily.

"Why would she invite us, Buffy? It's a _date_." Andi's machine goes silent at that and all that's heard is the light music and the scraping of hangers against the closet rod.

" _It's not a date!"_ she exclaimed unexpectedly, causing them to look at her in a surprised and somewhat startled manner.

"Uh… Andi you and Jonah are boyfriend and girlfriend. It's just you two. This is a date." At that exact moment Andrea Mack's word froze… _Sure me and Jonah have hung out just us plenty of times but I've never—we've never called anything a date, We aren't even officially together—_

"Andi… chill out." Noticing her friend's sudden distress, Buffy places her friend's outfit on the bed and sits down next her, rubbing her shoulder. "You and Jonah hang out all the time solo. This is no different. I know how your brain works so don't freak yourself out."

She was right; Andi was now brimming with anxiety. Luckily, her mother came in to ease the tense mood and offer moral support as she usually did. Bex knocked lightly before receiving a noise of compliance from Cyrus and peeked in, her face content.

"Who wants hot chocolate—Andi? Kid what's wrong?" Her motherly instincts, something that took years to properly develop and perfect, kicked in as she sat the tray of steaming beverages on the bedside table and sat on the other side of Andi, right on the floor. The younger Mack sighed and shrugged.

"I just realized me and Jonah are going on a _date_ tonight." She said the word as if it pained her. Her mother gave a confused look, before clearing her throat out of confusion and exhaling.

"Baby you and Jonah always go on dates… right? I mean maybe you guys call a date something different than what I did around this age but you've done this plenty of times." She tries, but Andi stands and then lies down on her bed, resting on the stomach that grew more uneasy by the minute.

"What Andi means is that she never looked at it that way—as a date."

"Were you nervous when you and Iris went on your first date?" she speaks from under her arms, and Buffy scoffs, not even giving Cyrus time to answer, which is good because even though the memory seemed pleasant he only clearly recalls one exact feeling about that date.

"Oh c'mon girl, boss up! This _is not_ your first date with Jonah. You guys have been on plenty of dates. Now get cute, get ready, and have a good time tonight for the both of us." She pushed out quickly and encouragingly. A bit shocked, Andi peered back at her with squinted eyes and Bex looked surprised but smiled reassuringly.

"What she said—well, except nicer and more motherly." Meanwhile Cyrus is reminiscing about his first date with Iris—the double date with Amber and Jonah, how he got his first kiss from her after their date to the dinosaur museum…

 _When he started catching feelings for his best friend's crush._

 **XX**

Later, Andi is dressed and her makeup is lightly done, courtesy of Buffy. Some of her tresses were up in a small bun on top of her head, and she was sitting on her bed, taking deep breaths.

"You look hot. Have fun, alright? But not too much, I don't need to be an aunt or anything." the mulatto speaks once again to Andi, who just nods and tries not to overexcite herself. Cyrus left earlier, he had gotten a call from Iris that she needed to be taken to see her mother as soon as possible. He left quickly and hastily, worrying everyone in the household. Bex brightened the mood by suggesting helping her daughter get ready for her date—and it worked. The girls laughed, joked around, and had a great time but that all faded for Andi once her phone buzzed and Jonah's name popped across the screen.

 **I'm outside :)- J**

"C'mon, you can't keep him waiting out there forever." Andi shares another expression but this time with Buffy at her mom's ironic words. Bex catches this and makes a defensive noise. "That was different that was marriage! This is a date to the local pumpkin patch!"

"Since when has Andi Mack been scared?" this alone motivates her, and she grabs her small backpack-purse that held her phone, coin purse, and house key, and then is out of the living room and out the door before anyone can stop her. She smiles when she sees Jonah on the porch, his eyes illuminated under the porch light.

"Wassup B, Buffy?" both greet him in their own ways and Bex leans against the door.

"Nothing much, just watch my girl and take care of her, alright? I mean it." Buffy says this and not Bex of course, which causes the group to laugh, all except the protective best friend who was more serious. She knows some of the things Andi has had to put up with because of Jonah and she was not having it. His looks were still handsome and most of the girls at school drooled over him, being _thirsty_ as Buffy put it.

Not that the brunette boy cared, he ignored those _bitches_ (also as Buffy put it) and focused on Andrea, as he should. His eyes were still bright and friendly, and extremely easy to get lost into. He was tall and had an athletic build due to his involvement in junior varisty sports, including ultimate frisbee of course. He was all around likeable and it pained even Buffy to be angry at him whenever he messed up with Andi…

"Have fun, be home by ten thirty." Bex says in a friendly but authoritative way before watching them walk off and get in his car. They drive off, and Buffy goes to collect her things. "Need a ride home?" the brunette is asked before smirking and shaking her head.

"Nah, I got a ride, but thanks. See you tomorrow." And with that Buffy pulls out her phone and texts a familiar number—it wasn't saved in her contacts but she knew who it belonged to.

 **You owe me. Pick me up from this address right now and take me home. I beat you.**

In a separate location, his own phone buzzes, and he groans before looking at the ceiling an wondering what he got himself into. He honestly thought he could outrun her—but he should've known she would wear her purple Nike spandex. _She does shit like that on purpose._

Marty made a noise of annoyance before realizing he _is_ a man of his word and climbs out of bed, already slipping on shoes and grabbing his keys. He puts his hood over a head of brown hair before leaving his house and entering the cold night—not like he had parents around to tell him otherwise. A mother fucking her boss and a dad who is _only god knows where_ can only control their son so much. He then drives to the address Buffy sent, the radio lightly playing as he remembers how her got himself into this mess.

 _It was last gym class, and of course Marty had to have this class with Buffy Driscoll. She was already a damn distration with her long legs and knee high socks—but then she just had to start stretching._

 _Buffy was flexible, more than flexible almost. He eyed the track, which was mostly empty besides a few runners from the cross country team, and gets a devilish glint in his dark eyes before strolling over to the mulatto, making sure his eyes don't linger on her for too long. Luckily (or maybe not), she stood and turned to face him, giving a quick smile that evolved into a haughty hand on the hip._

" _Stare much, creep? God chambers, I swear you're the prime example if they ever need a reason to end co-ed classes." She quips, he scoffs and crosses his arms._

" _And you're a prime example of why the girls should have a dress code with those tiny ass shorts on. I swear you love attention, Buffy." He inwardly laughs at the reaction he gets from her, her already small eyes glaring at him and her lips parting in a defensive an then disgusted snarl. "Anyway, enough small talk, let's race." Now it was her turn to make a noise._

" _Wow, I thought you were just a horndog but you're in the mood to lose, too? This is too easy." He shrugs and is already heading for the startline. "But lets make it interesting… if I win, you're my personal uber for the whole week. Whatever time I text you, you have to pick me up." His eyes almost widen at the request but his cocky stature returns._

" _Alright then, but I'm not losing, Driscoll."_

But he did. So, as he pulled up the house he realized this would be a long week.

" _And what if I win?"_

" _Who cares? You won't."_

He texts her of his arrival and he waits momentarily, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes even though it was still relatively early. Buffy finally leaves the house, the light from the foyer spilling onto her and causing him to shake his head and snort at the condescending face she makes. She first places her duffel in the back seat, and then climbs into the front, turning on the heat immediately. "What have I told you about wearing tiny ass shorts?"

"Ubers shouldn't talk. Just drive, please." He glances at her once more before pulling out of the Mack driveway. "Just so you know, I just beat Lania Smalls 100 meter."

"You never let me forget. Now shut up, I'm trying to concentrate." She swats at his arm.

"You're such a sore loser, Marty. Get over yourself." Marty shakes his head. _I can't believe I'm doing this._ He turns up the radio to drown her out and she rolls her eyes, peering out the window.

"You're trying out for soccer, right?"

"Obviously. I think I'll spare you all the humiliation and actually do girl's team this year." He rolls his eyes.

"Well I am too, when the time is right we should definitely condition together."

"Are you sure you don't just want to look at me in shorts again?" his cheeks heat up at that, and for a moment her gaze is too much for him to handle as he can see her looking at him from the corner of his eye.

"Don't flatter yourself." The rest of the ride is silent and when they arrive at Buffy's, all of the lights are off and she sighs at this, but quietly so Marty isn't aware this bothers her. He stops the car and looks at her expectantly.

"Is anyone home?" Buffy shrugs—her dad was probably still at the office. He's been working late a lot lately. Sometimes Buffy heard him come in late at night, but she was half asleep and never knew the exact time.

"Nah, but I'll be alright. I'm a big girl." She collects her bag from the backseat and peeks into the front window on the passenger side. "But thanks for the ride, loser." She sticks her tongue out playfully as she makes her way into the house, and Marty can only shake his head at Buffy Driscoll.

 **Xx**

 **Ay y'all so this is chapter one, hope yall like it**

 **I intend for this to be a long story, like fifty chapters or so, and once I see that yall like it I will defintely start prewriting chapters. After chapfter four I start review response as usual. Right now the story is still light and nothing too heavy is going on, I hate when stories get right into the shit like the first chapter, lol its mad annoying**

 **Also, regarding cyrus, only buffy knows he's gay. He's held this secret from even andi for three years. Peep Andrea and Beatrice—for some reason Buffy's name is always Beatrice to me. I feel like she would have a classic name after her granny or somethng with buffy as a nickame.**

 **Anyway, lemme know wassup, if you like it, tell me things.**

 **-simsgal**


	2. Chapter 2

"You've got a lot of growing to do."

Growing Pains

by simsgal

 **Rated T**

 **Boy wow whoa thank you to my first five reviewers Pal shipper, Coco, , Boris Yeltsin and and also the 2 favorites and 3 follows. It means a lot to me and really motivates me. Also, Coco sweetie, lol I normally don't do review response this early on but GIRL…. There will be some Jandi… sure will…. That's all I will say.**

 **ANYWAY HUNTIES**

 **Lets get on with it**

chapter two:: Andi

The date, or whatever it is, was going great. The young couple had taken numerous pictures, pet the animals there (Andi felt bad for them) and had picked out a nice pumpkin to carve next week. Andrea was now observing more pumpkins, scanning each one carefully just in case she decided she liked that one better. Jonah just watched her, admiring how concentrated she was and how her sweater was almost the exact hue of the vegetable he held in his hands.

"Jonah Beck what exactly are you staring at?" she asks him, breaking his trance-like stare. He turns red and if it hadn't have been cold Andi would have knew it was 100% because of her. Though the Asian girl was unsure, Jonah knew completely it was because of her, her frilly socks revealed by transparent Doc Marten boots.

"You sweater looks like the pumpkins." He says jokingly to her, which resulted in a snort from her as she turned to face him, taking in his features for the fifth time that fall night. For the middle of October, it was surprisingly chilly in Washington.

"Ha-ha, very funny." Is all she retorts before closing the space in between them. Their eyes meet for a moment longer that necessary before sharing a goofy but comfortable chuckle. She's at a loss for words. "I, uh—I have curfew." She tells him and he nods understandingly. They go to pay for their chosen pumpkin and Andi doesn't exactly remember why she was nervous about this being a _date_. Her jitters went away as soon as she got into his car because it was a routine she was extremely used to by now. Buffy was right, they hung out solo all the time.

"What's on your mind?" he breaks her train of thought and she glances to him for only a second before looking up with bliss.

"Oh nothing—it was stupid. I was just nervous about tonight." He gives a quizzical look. "Well, I was nervous when you said it was a date. I mean I guess we've been on tons of dates but this is different—I mean not really but-"

"Andi Mack you're adorable." This ends her rambling and causes her to blush, and Jonah knows it's 100% because of him. He wants to kiss her, and he might. He decides against it when she turns away. They've kissed only a few times, but nothing overtly passionate or as ferociously as he wanted to kiss her now. Pumpkin in hand, they both make their way to his car and get in, where Andi turns on the heat to warm her legs and Jonah reaches over to buckle her seat belt out of habit, something he had done for a while now since Andi usually forgot, oddly. She smiled and they were so close he could smell her lavender shampoo and even her minty lipgloss. Her lips, pink, and small but nicely filled. He looked at her eyes for a brief moment as if asking consent before pressing a soft peck to them, his arm leaning on the middle compartment. Andi's insides were aflame just like any other time they kissed, but it was different this time, a different fuel. She leans over as well, further into the interlock which quickly becomes a small make-out session to the young couple's surprise.

Jonah does something amazing—he bites her bottom lip which causes her to squeak and pull back. He chuckles, cheeks flushed from the intimacy shared.

"S-sorry." He clears his throat as she just smiles, pulling in her bottom lip and looking at her skirt.

"It's fine… I liked it." She says honestly and lowly, afraid she will burst into giggles. The way home is simple and warm, they're both still on some sort of high caused by that kiss—that damned kiss Jonah would probably think about for the next week.

"So… Buffy's birthday? What are we doing?" October 30th, the day smack before Halloween was Buffy's 16th birthday. Usually the gang would all gather at Andi's for a kickback, but this year it would probably be different; the party would be way bigger even though it wasn't a sweet sixteen technically, which was too sparkly and too frilly for the athlete's tastes.

"Well, probably the usual. Food, music, drinks—for Buffy and Iris of course—just , me, Buffy, Cyrus and Iris." The boy nods, smirking once his girlfriend addresses Buffy's liking of margaritas and Long Island Teas.

"Tight, sounds like a plan." Is all he responds, checking his mental calendar—not that he would miss the party. They're back at the Mack household in an instant, and he stops the car. The front light and porch light are on, meaning Bex was still awake. The night ambiance fills the car along with soft indie rock that they both noticed was playing on the radio. Something fills Andi and she unbuckles her seatbelt and kisses Jonah right on his lips. He grins at this spontaneous action before undoing his own safety belt and gripping her chin lightly as their lips stay pressed on one another, charismatic and eager. Her lipgloss combined with the rock playing, combined with the coolness outside and his cologne created the perfect atmosphere. And then Andi does something else crazy, out of this world, she allows her tongue to press against the soft obstruction and he obliges.

Their first actual kiss, one filled with desire that causes them both to turn pink after pulling apart. Andi wiped her mouth with her sleeve in a messy but flustered fashion before giggling, absolutely shocked with herself. Jonah is just as surprised but also extremely impressed.

"Well, goodnight." This mousy goodbye compares nothing to the moment they just shared, the warmth in her tummy sufficing over a coat as he walked her to the door. She couldn't even look at him as she fumbled with her keys—the green eyed boy only smirked.

"Goodnight, Andi." He whispers, and she is finally in the house. She shuts the door behind her and releases a pent up breath, some of the energy leaving her as a smile stretches across her features.

"So I'm guessing it went well?" her mother asks, a cup of tea in one hand and a pen in the other. _More than well. I can barely think straight right now—I'm running on fumes._

"Yes. Night, mom." And she kisses her mom on the cheek before scurrying off to her room. Bex smiles knowingly, the porch light and open blinds gave a nice view of the driveway. She remembers the thrills of her first kiss, her first romance, the way your whole body seems to just exist, but your mind is still in that exact moment.

She hasn't felt that way in a while.

Xx

Meanwhile, another couple is enjoying their time together. Upon getting the urgent text, Cyrus left Andi's house and made his way to Iris', ready to drive her to the hospital to see her ill mother. Instead, when he pulls up to the Navarro household, the brunette instructs him to come inside. He was confused but also worried that she may be having an anxiety attack—something she got lately without her mother around, he rushed into the house and was relieved to see her sitting on the couch, staring at the Tv with a blanket around her shoulders.

"What's wrong?!" he asks, his deep voice frantic. It mimicked his younger prepubescent voice almost to a tee.

"Oh, nothing." She says easily, and his chest falls, releasing a pent up breath. "I just wanted to see you." He smiles at her warmly, joining her on the couch, she stays in her spot, blanket still around her.

"Oh, well you scared me half to death." He starts. He rushed over here so quick that he was going over the speed limit. "I thought something happened to your mom." He grabs the popcorn from the coffee table and grins inwardly at how there are M&Ms scattered all throughout just like Iris likes it. He plops down next to her and watches _America's Next Top Model_ as Tyra yells at some girl about her bent leg.

"She's fine, I was just talking to her." She says in a cheery manner; but something seemed off about her. She sat stiffly, the orange garment wrapped tightly around her up to her neck. Her hair was in a ponytail, and he could see the pink hue of her ears. _Something is wrong_. "Babe what's wrong?" she seemed flustered and closed her eyes for a moment. He sets the bowl down and gives her 100% of his attention. Her cheeks were flushed and she leans over slowly, her eyes low lidded and he smiles before their lips met, and he takes his large hand and holds her face steady. He loved kissing Iris. One thing Cyrus hated was PDA, especially at school; but when they were home, in Cyrus' room with Stone Temple Pilots playing softly in the background, he was able to kiss her for hours, only parting for air every few minutes.

They had perfected kissing, and knew every little secret about eachother that involved their lips, like how Iris loved sucking on Cyrus' bottom lip and how Cyrus would pull on Iris' hair to lift her lips and make it easier to assert his dominance. Cyrus was defintely dominant in the relationship. He didn't even mean to be, but it only took a _certain_ look for her to melt right there in her Keds.

Now, they were having another heated make out session, except her hands hadn't found Cyrus' shirt like they usually would, gripping it tightly during their liplock. She simply held the orange blanket around her self. Cyrus shook his head and pulled away. "Are you cold?" she shook her head and stood, and in one instant removed the orange blanket from around herself resulting in his widen eyes. She stood in a sheer red nightie that revealed her black bra and panty set underneath—lace. Cyrus almost choked on his breath and Iris began to straddle him and kisses him more—he was frozen as she kisses his neck and jawline. "U-uh babe maybe not in the living room- anyone could come home." He says this nervously and with a shallow laugh, his cheeks grew hot. Iris gave a slight and seductive chuckle. His hands were by his sides as he sat stiffly.

 _Why does this feel so wrong?_ His thoughts resonated throughout his head and showed through his actions.

"Don't worry baby, my dad is working and my brother is at a sleepover." She whispers into another neck kiss—Cyrus hopes she won't leave a hickey like last time but then he shakes his head and lightly pushes her back, creating distance between them.

"W-hat are you doing Iris?" she smiled.

"I want you, Cyrus. You're my boyfriend and I want to do _things_." She said it so easily but the brunette boy could've rolled over and died right there. He had to think of something quick—he didn't want to do this right now. Cyrus was unsure of what teenage boy didn't want to have sex with his girlfriend but he's sure he was the only one.

He breaks away calmly and makes up some excuse about going to freshen up. Iris nods politely, a seductive grin still on her face as goes to the bathroom and closes the door behind him. He releases a pent up breath and can literally hear his heartbeat in his ears—which are red from embarrassment.

 _What am I going to do? I don't want to do this right now!_

He does the only thing he knows and dials Buffy's number.

On the other end of the line, the sleeping girl groans as she reaches around Andi's mass of pillows for her buzzing phone. She opens one small eye to see Cyrus' smiling face and presses the answer button before placing the phone on her ear.

Cyrus can practically hear the eye crust and drool of a sleeping Buffy but right now was an emergency—he knew the mulatto hated being woken up and wouldn't have done it otherwise. "In two minutes call and say there's e emergency and you need me to come over!"

"What? Cyrus what's going on?" she asks—Andi was currently in the shower, preparing for her date with Jonah. Buffy took it upon herself to take a short nap in her comfortable bed. She is immediately alert and ready for action. "Are those boys from gym talking shit again?"

"No!" he flushes the toilet as he whispers. "Just do it! Iris is trying to _do things_." He squeaks out, leaving a shocked Buffy as he hangs up the phone, washes his hands, and leaves the bathroom to see Iris no longer on the couch. He swallows nervously and makes his way up there stares slowly, trying to get as far into the two minutes as quick as possible. He reaches the top and sees Iris' door is open, and she's adjusting her lingerie which causes him to get a sudden headache.

 _Why am I not ready for this? Look at her, she's hot! She's gorgeous!_

He was trying to convince himself so much. He enters the room and stands there stiffly as she turns and smiles. "Well there you are—I didn't think you were coming." She joked and he chuckled nervously before sitting on her bed, facing the wall. She took charge once again, kissing his lips gently and guiding his hands around to which he allowed. "Just relax." She whispered and a sound from the heavens rang out" his phone started ringing loudly in his pocket and he feigned surprise before pulling it out,

"Buffy? What's wrong!?" he hoped he sounded natural.

Even if he didn't, Cyrus was out of the situatuion.

 **Xx**

 **Oh, cyrus LOL**

 **So this chapter was shorter but I wanted to end it here because I didn't want too much cyrus at the end of andi's chapter. I hope you guys liked it :) I'm mad excited for mackuary!**

 **Sorry it took so long to update, I've had finals and what not, school is kicking my butt. Thanks again for the support.**

 **-simmy**


	3. Chapter 3

"You've got a lot of growing to do."

Growing Pains

by simsgal

chapter three::

As the three inseparable friends relaxed together, Cyrus dreaded the moment his nosy friend would bring _it_ up. He took note of her eager facial expression and pretended not to notice. Andi on the other and was completely oblivious as she highlighted notes in her texbook. Buffy released a huge breath.

"Sowhatdidyoumeanbydothingsyesterday?" Cyrus pales because he understood the mulatto perfectly but Andi's small face screws into confusion.

"English, please?" Buffy squirms in her seat before nudging the nervous boy next to her. They were in the library for study hall and he somehow hadn't seen his girlfriend all day. Not that he was avoiding her, or anything.

"What did you mean by _do things_ , yesterday?" she asks nosily, and this was the inquiry Cyrus feared. Andi's face then shifts into curiosity and even more confusion as her hand stops dragging the neon orange across its page.

"You and Iris _did things?_ " she asked loudly, causing some to look over in an annoyed manner and Cyrus to shift into a beet red.

"No!" he whispered and she gasped again before shooting apologetic looks to all of the nasty glares.

" _With someone else!?"_ This causes Cyrus to rub his temples—this was too much for him!

"No! Good no! Never in a million years." He starts before clearing his head and Andi relaxes before giving his full attention to her boy best friend. She sometimes forgets that Iris is a whole two years older than them—most upper classmen were sexually active. Andi didn't think about sex a lot, or even sex with Jonah. She briefly wonders if her boyfriend thought about sex- and who with. She inwardly shakes her wandering thoughts before returning her focus to Cyrus and Buffy. "She just wanted to get _it on_ and I didn't." he simply says, if only it was that easy. He wishes he could be completely honest and say he wasn't 100% sexually attracted to Iris, or really only female. At first he assumed it was both boys and girls because he used to feel a _certain_ way while watching Angelina Jolie, but after a while it faded into jealousy of how gorgeous she was, and he realized it was a feeling of admiration and inspiration—not desire.

"And you didn't?"

"No—not really. I just wasn't in the mood." _Andi I'm gay. I like men._ He hated keeping her in the dark but if he told her that he was gay he would _have_ to tell her the entire truth. That he had a crush on Jonah, the hugest one, actually. He talked to his stepmom about it—he couldn't make it stop. Buffy knew everything, though. Somehow it made him feel worse because he dragged her in on the secret.

"I always thought that's what all boys thought about." Andi shrugs and Buffy mimics the motion. "Not that there's anything wrong with wanting to wait." She adds supportively, somewhat easing the frustrated boy. "I'm glad Jonah is waiting."

"Yeah, well I don't want Iris to think it's _her._ She's literally perfect in every way." He sighs, the curly haired girl places a manicured hand on her friend's shoulder.

"Don't worry, Cyrus. Iris will just have to accept you're not ready." They all agree with this statement and go back to studying. Andi briefly glances up then back to her book, a small grin on her features and then Buffy feels a tug on one of the plaits that go down the side of her head. Her head lightly snaps back and she groans before turning to see Marty, a cheeky and obnoxious grin on his face.

"Martin!"

" _Beatrice_ we're in a library." He says in a mock hushed tone, and her friends laugh at their interaction. Buffy immediately stands, not enjoying the huge height difference between the library chair and his standing 6 feet. "Well are you ready? We have a 5k to train for." Rolling her eyes, the brunette gathers her things.

"I don't get it, why do you guys run for enjoyment?" Cyrus quips, noticing Marty was wearing his usual Nike athletic gear. Buffy wore the same—a pink windbreaker with the white check on display and black leggings. _I don't even want to!_ Buffy complains inwardly. The only reason she was doing the 5k was to boost her chemistry grade—the curly haired girl was horribly failing chemistry and participating in the local Breast Cancer run was extra credit. She explains this and her two friends nod.

Buffy actually loved running, speed both thrilled and excited her. Long distance just wasn't her best feat. She was more built for sprints with her long legs and quick pace.

"Have fun sweating."

"I'll save you some." She calls in reply to her girl best friend, who just smirks. Marty leads the way to his car his normal cocky stride present. "And why are you so happy?"

"Because while you may be the queen of speed, you have baby lungs and I'm going to smoke you in any long distance." He boasts and her cheeks turn red as she slaps his arm.

"Yeah yeah, a few weeks of this conditioning and I'll be leaving you in the dust with that too. Enjoy this while you can." She snaps, sitting in the passenger and adjusting the seat. He reaches over her lap and puts the seat back to its original position.

"Don't." is all he says, their faces close and Buffy's holding an annoyed expression. He puts on his seat belt and then Buffy notices they aren't going towards the park. "We have to let my dog out, is that okay?" he asks facetiously, he was going to do it anyway.

"I didn't know you had a dog." She simply states. "No wonder you smell sometimes." She is super pleased with this statement until he slams on the brakes quickly and then accelerates again, causing her to give an uncharacteristically girly shriek. "Are you crazy?" she yells and the brunette boy can only laugh at his passenger's discomfort. Buffy's heart is still beating hard but she sees something besides Marty's usual arrogant smirk or resting face: a dimple. She wants to point it out but decided against it, instead feigning ignorance towards it and regaining her composure. When they arrive at the Chambers household, Buffy isn't surprised by the nice size of it. It was like a small McMansion, not too big but not shabby either.

"Coming?" he asks and she also exits the car and follows closely behind him, silent. Upon entering the house, she takes note of the tile floors and high foyer ceiling. Exactly to the right is a large family portrait containing a young Marty, an older sister, and Mr. and Mrs. Chambers. They had matching cheesy grins that Buffy came to despise when the teenaged Chambers boy wore it.

"Where're your parents?" she asks automatically, also noticing various scholastic achievements and awards.

"I don't know." He replies instantly and truthfully, a bland tone evident. _I never know where they are. They don't tell me anything._ The curly haired girl could relate to that. She knew what it felt like to have en empty house a majority of the time. She doesn't say this but can relate with Marty in this aspect. Buffy suddenly hears the pitter of feet against the floor and the tinkling of a collar. "Hi boy! Hey! Hi!" she turns to see a black puppy frollick up to Marty and circle around him, welcoming him home. The dog finishes greeting his owner and then turns to the unfamiliar scent and face. Buffy is amused and overwhelmed with cuteness as he calmly and curiously approaches her as well as he can while Marty clicks his leash on. "He likes girls." Is all he simply says and she laughs when the dog circles around her, getting her tangled all while sniffing her.

"What's his name?" she asks, placing the tip of her dainty finger on his noise. She giggles when the dog attempts to lick her finger. Marty watches for a while, his mind wandering before clearing his throat.

"Uh, I haven't decided yet. My parents just got him for me." He finally answers. _They somehow thought it would make up for their absence in my life._ Buffy admires the dog's shiny coat once more before standing and allowing the canine to lead the way out front. "He's a lab." She nods understandingly before following the pair down the driveway. Every now and then the puppy will look back to make sure Marty and Buffy are still following.

"Well you have to name him." she tells him, and he nods.

"I know, but I can't think of anything good enough." She observes the small bundle of energy and thinks.

"He looks like a Marty Jr." the boy laughs sarcastically.

"Funny! I think he looks like a Buffy." She rolls her eyes.

"So was he a birthday present or something?" _Oh Buffy, don't act like you don't know my birthday. I've invited you to every single one._

Buffy knows that Marty's birthday is March 4th but didn't want to seem like she cared… she wonders if he knows that her birthday is this month.

"No, sort of a _just because_."

"Must be nice." She sighs, wondering what it's like to be rich. She far from struggling but definitely wasn't rich or even had as much money as Marty apparently did. Even as much as a jerk he was, he never flaunted or bragged about that aspect—he was similar to Buffy in that way too. He preferred bragging about his physical feats and achievements. Him and the mulatto attempted to one-up another subconsciously constantly. Another thing she noticed about the boy was that he never talked about his romantic relationships—not that she would care or anything. Most boys their age could sit and talk about their sexual accomplishments for hours like barking dogs but Martin was more lowkey about those things. Buffy thinks about Cyrus and his predicament earlier with Iris. She was the only one besides his stepmother who knew of his true sexuality. That was definitely the reason he "wasn't ready" to be with Iris in that way—because what sixteen year old boy would pass on the opportunity to have sex with their hot girlfriend?

 _I wonder if Marty has ever done anything with one of his lil girlfriends…_

A competition Buffy would surely lose, if she hadn't already. She wasn't even going to attempt a bet at who would lose theirs first. That was something she probably wouldn't bet on ever. It's different for girls, and that's what she's always been told.

"What you thinking about?" her train of thought is broken and she blushes due to the context of it.

"N-nothing!" she lies, looking the other way so he can't see the pink hue across her cheeks. Unknown to Buffy, Marty often glances at her while she's deep in thought. In class, he can tell when her mind is elsewhere. "Well, about my birthday. What I'm going to do for it." She smirks excitedly.

"I forgot you're still fifteen—a baby." He teases and she rolls her eyes.

"This baby can beat your time for events." She quips back.

"Is this baby inviting me to her birthday party?" she feigns thought for a moment, tapping her chin,

"Mmmmm, no. Don't think so." She says quickly.

"Guess I'll have to crash the party then." He replies, looking her right in the face. They meet eyes for a moment but then look to the dog when he barks. A single raindrop falls onto Buffy's rounded nose and she gasps, glancing up. "Oh, great."

"There goes our conditioning…" she says more to herself. Marty picks up the curious puppy who continues to bark at the raindrops that plop onto his black snout. The pair rush to Marty's house where their now wet shoes squeak on the floor. The noise irritates Buffy so she slips her Nike's off, revealing pink socks.

"I'll take you home when the rain dies down. I hate driving in the rain. We can go upstairs," Is all he says silently before clipping off the leash. The dog trots up the stairs and Buffy follows, running shoes in hand. She wasn't fond of having to spend however long it rains for with him but it could be worse. "You don't even know which one is my room." He calls up to her and she shrugs- she was nosy anyway. While he stayed downstairs, occupied with something else, Buffy's brash nature is to go up to his room. Upon reaching the top of the angular stairs, there is a movie room in the upstairs loft complete with a popcorn machine and a projection screen. Buffy sees the _Rocky_ movies laid haphazardly around the projector and grins at how corny Marty is. She approaches one closed door and notices its locked.

"Don't—don't go in there. It's locked anyway." This immediately piques her interest.

"Why, you got somebody locked up in there? A torture chamber? Oh! You're like _Christian Grey_ aren't you?" he gags at her reference to the terrible X rated movies and shakes his head.

"You would probably like that." He smarts, topping her. She turns red again and stays quiet, following behind him. The dog is already on the bed, his ears perking up as they enter the room even though he's fallen asleep. She looks around his room and sees numerous trophies, pictures of Marty in various athletic uniforms and with little league teams; this was similar to her room. He has an Xbox, of course, and a pile of games on the small table under his wall mounted TV. Never in a million years would she imagine herself in Marty's room for any reason. It was clean, surprisingly. She sat in his desk chair awkwardly, obviously uncomfortable. She looks at his bed again and her thoughts from earlier return. This causes her to spin the other way to avoid looking at it. "Well you're quiet for once."

"Yeah, I'm bored." She feigns annoyance the best she can.

"Play Xbox?" he asks, and she shrugs.

"Not really… you'll probably get creamed though, regardless." Now its his turn to be amused.

"We'll see about that."

 **X**

 **BITCHES! Im a slut for Muffy OKAY? I havent even watched the new episode yet but ive seen clips. I cant tell if its muffy or not. Sorry for the slow updates, I promise theyre going to be closer together from now on. I caint be treating yall any kind of way!**

 **As usual, next chapter will have active review response. I always start them at chapter four!**

 **Till next time yall! Also if youre wondering why I ended chapter naming its because I don't want to confine myself to a single main topic within the chapter—also, I don't want to spoil any of the content within the chapter. Hope its not an issue.**

 **xxsimmy**


	4. Chapter 4

"You've got a lot of growing to do."

Growing Pains

by simsgal

chapter four::

 _Rebecca,_

 _I've written to you over and over. I'm not sure if you've ever seen my letters, perhaps I'm Cecelia's little secret. If you ever respond, now would be the best time. I'm desperate, Ham has been sending money but Amelia and I need help.I'm living off of minimum wage and tips, but my landlord increased the rent. In a week I'll be out on the streets. I did a little digging around and found your new address, I hope you don't mind. You shouldn't; after all you've always been "Bex",mindless and carefree and you were somehow able to leave your past behind you—Bowie included. You're so privileged, to have supportive parents and that grand life that you do now. I heard you own a business, and it made me wonder why you get to have it so damn good while I'm living from paycheck to paycheck. I never got to be "Sam". I was always Samantha, I had to grow up too fast and I don't want Amelia to have to grow up the same. Fix what Bowie did. I'll be in Washington in three days._

 _Besides, it's about time Andrea met her sister._

 _-Samantha_

Bex's face was flushed as she had drove down to the original Mack household as quickly as she could, her hair wind-whipped as she didn't even attempt to locate her helmet.

" _What is this?"_ her voice cracks prepubescently as her mother stares at the letter in a wide-eyed fashion. She's speechless. "Mom, answer me!"

"Don't raise your voice at your mother." Her father calmly but sternly commands her. Bex shakes her head and slams the letter on the table, the handwriting in cheap blue ink. He was always there to level out his arguing wife and daughter—their quarrels would've started in the night and lasted until the sky was orange with a new sun if it weren't for him. "Listen-" Cecelia snatches the letter and her eyes scan it once again.

"No! You didn't need to know—we were going to tell you-"

"When? When were you going to tell me that Andi has a sister?" Cecelia tosses the paper, approaching her irate and confused daughter whose voice was wavering and pitched.

"Oh don't ask me about _when_ , I wondered that every single day when you weren't in Andi's life, I wondered _when_ you were going to get your shit together and be a good mother!" Bex gasps at the outburst and Ham is taken aback by his usually docile wife's language but is even more surprised when Bex raises her hand and slaps Cecelia quickly and sharply. Holding her cheek, she slaps her daughter back, the sound filling the painfully quiet house before Ham steps in between them as a big and effective shield. When Rebecca was younger things barely got physical but when they were—it was like two random hussies on the street were having a showdown.

 _Things were going so well! I was actually getting along with the bitch until this happened. No one tells me anything in this house!_

Bex's thoughts are projected through sudden sobs. "And you wonder why I didn't care for Bowie at first. He got my sixteen year old daughter _pregnant_ , ruining your life, shaming our family—and then he did it again to some other girl and she had the nerve to send _us_ letters asking for money!" Cecelia ranted, her voice high and face pink.

It all made sense… her mother and her baby's father always had an odd bond. Sometimes they got along well, especially back when Rebecca had first told her daughter the truth about herself and Bowie; but sometimes it seemed as if Cecelia wanted the man dead. And now she knew why. He knew what he did. She hadn't seen Bowie in about five months but when he last left he said something about guilt eating away at him.

 _5 months prior, May_

 _It was a sunny day but not swelteringly hot. It was early, around nine, and Rebecca stood with Bowie, the man she had a child with, on the train platform. He said nothing except looked at the ground and for the moment it seemed like they were the only two at the bus station. Andi was at school, she would come home to see her fleeting father was gone once again. Disappointed but not surprised—she was used to his behavior but loved him nonetheless. Him and Bex were all the same. They couldn't stay in one place for too long—it made them antsy and gave them incurable anxiety. Bex managed it well for the sake of Andi, already past her antsy phase but Bowie left frequently—the night before having an Asian Heritage month celebration dinner and the next morning boarding the Greyhound bus._

 _This time he didn't know when he would be back._

" _Why are you leaving?" Bex' hair had grown out and was back in a messy ponytail. He had awaken her to say goodbye and she insisted on driving him to the station._

" _I—I have to Bex. There's more things going on in my life than you could understand. I want to be able to stay in one place but I can't." she nods slowly before meeting his eyes._

" _Please don't be gone for too long. Please don't miss Andi's sixteenth birthday. She needs you. A daughter needs her father." He shakes his head and when he looks up there are actual tears. His voice is low as he speaks._

" _I haven't been there this whole time. She doesn't need me—no one needs me. I just need to focus on other things right now, alright? Please apologize to Andi for me." She pulls him into a tight hug that allows their heartbeats to synchronize and feels a warm streak down her own face._

" _314 to Arizona now boarding." The intercom announces Bowie's exit and he pulls from her before wiping his nose and face quickly. He picks up his bag and disappears into the crowd._

 _Bex hasn't seen him since._

 _Present Day_

Now she knew what the guilt was. He had done the same thing to another girl… Bex wouldn't say her life was ruined but it was made much harder than it needed to be. All because of one stupid night.

She loved Andi with all of her heart and then more—don't ever doubt a mother's love for her child. She thinks this while glancing at her sniffling and wet-eyed mother and realized Cecelia hid everything to protect her. Just like Bex hid things from Andi. She glances at the now crumpled letter and swallows a dry lump. Samantha was just doing what was right for her own child.

A mother's love.

XxX

Buffy, Cyrus, and Andi were sitting outside since it was oddly warm for a fall day. It was now Tuesday and they sat in the grass and studied for an upcoming test.

"What are the three types of muscles?" Andi quizzed her friend, who tapped his chin in thought. He spent hours studying the night before, and now the test was next period and he couldn't recall a single thing.

"Strong. Not strong… oxidized?" Buffy shakes her head, sucking in her bottom lip.

"No, sweetie." Is all she says to comfort her friend whose shoulders slump unenthusiastically. " Don't worry, we'll give you a good crash course." The two other friends are pleased with this answer. Andi pulls out the next neon flashcard she created in the library yesterday. Cyrus brings this day up, but for another reason.

"So, It started raining while me and Andi were walking home yesterday—did you and Marty still run?" he asks nosily, now it was his turn to be a bug. She grins at his familiar behavior (Buffy was nosy to a fault) and closes her book momentarily.

"No, and he hates driving in the rain for some reason so we stayed at his place until it died down. I crushed him at _Zombies_." She gloats, reminiscing on the victory, at which she stood from the beanbag and did a small victory dance. This also included an amused but annoyed Marty going to the kitchen and drinking half a glass of pickle juice mixed with mustard.

"Buffy always wins." Andi says curtly and the girls cackle.

"Yeah, and his parents weren't home so we hooked up his XBOX to the big TV in his movie room."

"He _would_ have a movie room." Cyrus admits vapidly while Andi is frozen.

"Wait, what?"

"Yeah I know, he's a totally rich snob." The Asian girl hits her friend's light skinned arm in shock, causing the mulatto to give a confused look. Nothing else happened at Marty's house so she had nothing to hide or be embarrassed about. Cyrus and especially Andi always expected something to come from Marty and Buffy's strange friendship (or rivalry) but nothing ever did. There was always this weird tension between them; Buffy wouldn't call it sexual tension or anything. It was just that whenever her and Marty were in a room together she felt weird and even more weird when he got all in her face and teased her (not tense) and lately her body reacted oddly to his subtle shoves and really any contact at all (not sexual). Buffy knew when she had a crush on someone and this wasn't it.

"No, I mean you and Marty were home without his parents?" the half black girl shrugs and nods, her expression unwavering.

"My parents aren't home 24/7 either, I get it. Stop being weird about, all we did was play XBOX." She says easily, eating one of Cyrus' carrots. "Bet lets focus on how _you_ haven't talked to Iris since Friday." He cringes at this truth before turning back to his textbook. He wasn't exactly avoiding the senior girl, but he felt somewhat uncomfortable—okay, very uncomfortable after that incident from Friday night. He had no idea how to look at her in the face. Now, he wasn't completely ghosting her but he made an effort to duck around corners if he saw her.

"Is it that bad that I haven't?"

"Yes." Both girls answer at the same time, causing the boy to groan. "But don't worry, I'm sure she'll understand. It's not like she's some sex obsessed boy who will break up with you for it." Andi adds, crunching on a carrot. He nods meekly but then thinks. _Of course she wouldn't break up with me because of this… but sex obsessed? Definitely Iris._ This wasn't the first time Iris attempted to seduce Cyrus. Not even the second or third. It was the night of Cyrus' sixteenth birthday when Iris first tried making a move, luring him in with raunchy dancing and high waisted shorts. The second was after a school football game in her car. He explained he was in a rush to get to the diner celebration (a lie) and she agreed and halted the groping. He had no idea how tell tell her he "wasn't ready". In reality, he never would be ready for her in that way. Andi and Buffy looked behind Cyrus and then gave him a subtle look that he caught onto. _Oh great._

"Iris, hey." Andi greets through slightly gritted teeth. Cyrus doesn't even turn to face her until Buffy gives a small kick to his foot to which he glares at her for.

"Hey guys, Cyrus." Iris replies in an equally friendly greeting. _Well at least she doesn't sound mad._ He stands and brushes his pants off, looking the dark haired girl in the face for the first time in a few days. He's good at reading people and is trying to see if she's faking nice only because his two friends are right behind him, eating carrots and watching like it's dinner theatre.

"Oh, hey babe." He grunts out, his throat suddenly dry. The small wrinkle above her pert nose indicates a mad Iris. He swallows the lump in his throat and tries to play it off but is internally screaming, especially when Beatrice and Andrea stand.

"Well, I think we'll get going now. We have to go get some uh, textbooks."

"Yeah, textbooks! See you guys!" Buffy supports Andi's lie and gives the couple privacy that was undesired on Cyrus' behalf. They shuffle off and Buffy turns and mouthes something he can't really make out—he was bad at reading lips after all. As soon as they aren't within earshot Iris' demeanor completely changes but she isn't mad exactly. Cyrus is actually surprised and softens as her own expression does and her lip pokes out.

"Cyrus is there something wrong with me?" she asks lowly, her voice girly and dainty. The question he had been fearing she would ask. There wasn't at all, she was perfect in every way. He tells her this. "Then why won't you be intimate with me? I've tried so many times and you just _reject_ me." Iris wants to add how numerous boys from the football team hit on her daily but decides not to. Her conflicted boyfriend sighs and decides to tell the truth, well the partial truth.

"Look Iris, I love you, I'm so happy with you but I'm just—I'm not ready for sex." Iris nods and is attempting to understand. She finds it kind of weird, especially since she's considered a knock out amongst many—and not to mention she's popular. Cyrus fears she won't for a moment. "I just feel like I'm not good enough, I don't want to disappoint you." He adds on fluff to pull at her heartstrings and place the blame on himself completely and it's working. Her face relaxes but is still sad but instead she feels sad for Cyrus. "I feel like our relationship is good the way it is, you know? I like watching movies with you, I love when you read to me, like kissing you;" his cheeks turn red as he says this, and Iris can't help but smile and tuck hair behind a listening ear. "I don't want to add anything else on, especially something that might complicate us." He says finally. None of that was a lie, he really did enjoy spending time with Iris. He greatly enjoyed the platonic activities they did together—plus kissing of course. But he's only kissed one person, so he wasn't sure if he enjoyed kissing _her_ or just kissing in general. He assumed it was the latter.

"Why didn't you tell me, babe? I'm fine with waiting. I know you would do the same for me." She looks distant for a moment. "And you're right. It would really complicate things." She sighs and rubs his shoulders. She feels bad for being pushy and knows if it were the other way around Cyrus would get tons of heat. "Sorry for being so… you know." He nods and gives her a genuine smile. He feels a little better but knows he's still lying to her. For the time being, though, things are going well for Cyrus and Iris once again. She then notices his burgundy cardigan and she giggles as she looks at her own sweater dress of the same color. "We match." She tells him.

"You always copy me. Well, I can't help that I'm a style visionary." He grins and teases, and the climate of their relationship is back to normal again. They joke and mock eachother as he gathers his books from the grass and the bell rings at the perfect time.

"I'm wearing my _Steve Maddens_." She says, referencing her below the knee-scrunched boots.

"What a coincidence, so am I." he wears casual Harken style shoes of a dark brown color that match his girlfriend's.

"Yeah, but you're copying me because _I_ got mine months before you did." And with that they walk back inside and continue their warm chatter, not holding hands but with their arms brushing and making subtle contact. From across the quad, a peeping Buffy and Andi smile at eachother and bump fists. They knew Cyrus would be able to explain himself and they were glad Iris understood.

Well, only Buffy knew the entire truth and she knew damn well Cyrus didn't tell his girlfriend _that_ much.

But it was apparently enough.

"So, have you and Jonah had the talk yet?" Andi and Jonah talk all the time about various things. Car talks, book talks, movie talks, but no sex talk. The thought of it made her palms sweat as she imagined the possible scenarios and consequences. She especially thought of her parents and realizes _she_ was the product of what most of her peers do mindlessly and sometimes unsafely. "I'll take that as a no." Buffy says and Andi nods.

"He doesn't really mention or bring it up. We just kissed with tongue for the first time this weekend." She says. Buffy nods.

"Cute. First its that, and then you're kissing on a bed, and then next thing you know you're wearing a big t-shirt with no panties and he's underneath you." Buffy says easily, a shrug leaving her body as Andi gives her an incredulous look and then a small laugh.

"Where did you hear that?"

"Some girl from my gym class. She said if you're uncomfortable naked you could wear a big t-shirt. Or a dress." The mulatto says it so easily and Andi is stark pink. Honestly, Buffy was shy when talking about sex too but she damn sure wouldn't let anyone see her blush or act meekly. She was glad none of her friends had it on their mind either, even if they did have potential people to do it with. Buffy had no one in mind but she was more than positive numerous boys disgustingly had her in mind.

"How romantic." The Asian girl says facetiously and they both enter their Biology class, feeling prepared for the test.

xxX

In English Buffy works with Marty on some assignment about quotes in the book. Well, Marty is working anyway and Buffy is busy speed reading all of the chapters before the test they have in ten minutes. He looks at her as she is focusing on the words on the page. He shakes his head and grins at her slacker behavior before putting his own pen down and stretching.

"Why did you stop writing?" she asks, not looking away from the novel.

"Why didn't you start?" he quips back. She rolls her eyes and then they return to their exact spot on the page where the animals are sad and chasing after _Boxer_ because he's going to get turned into glue, except they didn't know because they're dumb and can't read.

"Listen I'm busy, can't you see that? I had no idea about that test today." She whispers to him, flipping a page she considered to be useless information.

"No. I can't." he teases. "And now you have seven minutes left." She groans and slams the book down, but no one notices because there is chatter all throughout the classroom.

"Why do we have to read a dumb book about dumb animals anyway?" she whines, flopping down in her seat, she slides until her legs are way out past the desk. Marty notices she wears baby blue socks that match her scrunchee.

"It's a parallel to communism, Buffy. You know, marxism? That stuff." He tells her easily. She gives him a sideways look.

"Of course you like the dumb animal book." She grumbles before picking up the literature once again. "So, about my birthday party." She places the novel down for good, ignoring the previous seven minute warning from her partner who is now attentively listening. "I'm thinking the usual. Just a small group.". "You, me, Iris and Cyrus, Andi and Jonah. Maybe some of the girls from soccer." She says officially, as if party planning is a priority at the moment. Marty allows the mulatto to ramble and is shallowly listening but is too busy focusing on what he might potentially get her if he does go. Maybe a new pair of running shoes or something like that.

"Yeah, Uh-huh." He says, feigning a dismissive attitude.

"You're not listening!" she whines, and he laughs at how annoyingly childish she can be before tapping the face of his watch and then gesturing towards the book, which she snatches up and continues to read.

xX

When she gets home Buffy is tired from running a few laps after school and goes down the hall immediately to flop down on her bed. She sighs with relief as she slips off her confining running shoes and socks, her pink toenails revealing themselves to the room. Next, the scrunchee is revoked from its position and her curls fly all around her, loose and uncontained. No one was home, of course, but her phone does buzz with a text from her father that he will be home for dinner. Buffy is immediately and excited because this is the first time in 3 days her father will be home for dinner. She pulls out her laptop and goes to Youtube to look up recipes. Buffy was an okay cook but when she got the laptop and set it up in the kitchen it felt like she was one of her aunts from her mom's side. Her mother was a good cook, and so were all of her sisters. A table full of food and laughter accompanied black aunts in the kitchen gossiping and unintentionally imprinting their behavior on a young Buffy. She was small enough to slip behind flowy dresses and sneak tastes of food. Her mom's side of the family never really treated her different, besides the occasional comment of her being a "light-bright" which soon became her pet name from her uncle Remi and grandmother. She remembers family members sometimes cooing over her, but her mother put a stop to that quickly.

Her father's side of the family was extremely different. They literally paled in comparison. It was more quiet but still lively. Classic rock and Celine Dion rang throughout the house instead of 90s throwback R&B hits. Her obnoxious cousins that loved to play in her hair and one time got peanutbutter stuck in her tight coils (which resulted in her first fight). There were things she did prefer though. They were always on time, and there was less family drama. They didn't stay up all night singing, dancing, or being rowdy, which was just how a young and tired Buffy liked it when she had to go to bed. She didn't feel like she was missing out on anything.

For some reason, while she enjoyed her mother's side of the family more, she always strained to fit in with her father's side. As she grew older and her cousins did too they all realized how different they were. The comments made about Buffy's features exactly paralleled eachother on both sides of the family. Her curls got oddly fetishized in comparison to Jayla and Mariah's coils but chided in comparison to Ashlynn's long flowing brunette tresses. It was all really complicating for her and she didn't know where she stood exactly, or which side she identified with more.

Thinking about it made her headache.

She of course asked Andi, who seemingly relate. Bex could relate too. They say you just shouldn't put yourself in a box and attempt to mold yourself because of someone else's expectations. Buffy wishes it were that easy. She doesn't get to even go down to the kitchen because she falls asleep right there on the bed. A mixture of conditioning and studying was wearing her out, but she knew it would all be worth it. She hears her dad come home and she instinctively shoots up, and goes to the front room to greet him.

"Hey bug." He calls her his pet name and she cheeses, happy that he's home before ten.

"Hey, dad." Believe it or not, Buffy was a total daddy's girl. They had a strong bond that was disgustingly mushy or one that caused her to have a 'spoiled brat' attitude. Since she was so involved in sports it was more like a father-son relationship. "How was work?" she's pleased to see her dad brought home a pizza and some pasta. She sets out two plates and napkins for them.

"Oh man," the fair man starts, his eyes eccentric and aged but he was still handsome. Buffy has his eyes. "It was a heck of a time drafting my rebuttal but I think things will go alright for my client." He says, Buffy knows her dad is a defender but doesn't know too much. He's mostly a family lawyer and deals with custody battles between families and things like that. "He really wants his son." Mr. Driscoll says, his mouth filled with hot cheese.

"Well I hope things go well for him." is what his daughter says, attempting to reach out. She liked that her dad kept people together that need to be.

"Me too, bud."

 **XxX**

 **Yeehaw yall okay so**

 **This when thangs start getting a little JUICY let me know how you feel give feedback, tell me what you think happened with Bowie and Samantha. This is where things start veering off from the canon storyline which is why I don't like writing fics while the show is still going on. THIS IS NOT AN AU. This is just years in the future, like 3-4.**

 **So anyway happy black history month you guys! And Chinese New Year is in a few weeks so if I update again by then I will repeat myself but happy Chinese New Year to those who partake!**

 **I gave yall a litte muffy in here because last episode had me fcked up… major, buffy really playing with fire right now.**

 **REVIEW RESPONSE**

 **Liabelen10** **: Girl im so excited to write this multi fic, I have super huge plans for this story and for muffy! I hope you stick around long enough to see those plans run through! And I a for jyrus! So hopefully you stick around to see that too wink wink, thanks for reading!**

 **Guest Jan 7** **: ME TOOOO IM A MUFFY STAN**

 **Maggie:** **I have** **tons** **of muffy coming yall way so do not worry, but we have to give our characters some time to realize what's up. Im teasing you guys for now. Small appetizers. Thanks for the support and for reading!**

 **Boris Yeltsin:** **I definitely will! I should be updating more frequently now, exams have died down and what not. Excited for you to read the rest of the story.**

 **Guest Jan 27** **: I'm glad you like my story, thank you so much for reading! And yes I absolutely love muffy**

 **Thank you all so much for the support! And thank you to everyone who followed, favorited, or even viewed this story. It mean a lot 2 me, it motivate me.**

 **-simmy**


	5. Chapter 5

"You've got a lot of growing to do."

Growing Pains

by simsgal

chapter five::

Bex anxiously leaned against the kitchen countertop, her demeanor calm but her thoughts racing. _The letter. Bowie. Samantha and Amelia._ She looks down to her third cup of "calming tea" that wasn't working too well. She looks at Andrea, her miracle, her baby girl and wonders how she could love someone so much. Andi was born small, a small baby who the doctor said would grow into her feet. She didn't cry. She was looking around, her eyes already open and absorbing as much as possible: her sweaty mother, dark hair clinging to her forehead, her father, who was enamored with her petite form and couldn't take his eyes away from her.

Her grandmother, whose face was tearing with the hugest smile Bex had seen from her in a while. The grandmother that raised Andi as her own. Taught her how to ride a bike, how to tie her shoes. Probably saw her first steps. Was allowed to put the report cards and perfect attendance sheets on the fridge.

She snaps back to the present day of sixteen year old Andi, who sat at the kitchen table working on a homework assignment. She's kept so many things from this child, for so many years. _Maybe she won't care that she has a sister._

 _Maybe she will._

Bex is torn and begins to wonder about small insignificant things. She wonders if the other child looks like Bowie too. Sometimes Bex saw the fleeting man within her daughter's features at the most inopportune times. She wonders how old the child is. Did he meet Samantha the first time he left? Or on tour maybe? The distressed half-asian woman imagines a groupie wearing her nipples as an accessory and a halter top going into a hotel room with Bowie, and feels sick. She shakes her head of these thoughts and sips more tea.

"So, what are we doing for Buffy's sixteenth?" Bex asked, sitting across from her concentrated daughter. Every year the party was held at the second generation Mack household, and Bex was really laid back and didn't care too much about what they did because they were good kids. They stayed out of trouble. During Bex's life at that age, she would've already been a month pregnant with Andi (unknown to her at the time). But even before that, she was definitely a wild child. Sneaking out, driving around town until the sun came up, hanging out of the sunroof and giving cars behind her a nice view of what boobs look like before age thirty; and then she met Bowie.

Benjamen Rowe Quinn was sociable but stuck to his small circle of art and music kids back in his highschool days. He spent lunches writing songs and testing chords, joking around with friends about going on tour and leaving this terribly small town. He was known as Bowie by everyone he met, except for those times he came in after curfew and then he magically became Benjamen Rowe again. After he and Bex met, whenever they kissed and he happened to squeeze her butt or dip lower to her neck he also became the infamous Benjamen Rowe.

Now he was mostly referred to as _gone_.

"Probably chilling here, music, movies and the usual." The younger Mack girl answers excitedly, but still focused on her homework.

"I cant' believe you're all sixteen now, I feel so old."

"It's only been three years." _I feel like I've missed so much of your life._ Bex doesn't say this but instead rubs her head.

"I know but, wow, sixteen." She sips more tea.

"That's when you had me, right?" Bex is somewhat taken by surprise by this question and this is one of the times she wonders if her daughter can read minds.

"Yes. It was."

"What was that like?" Bex thinks for a moment. No negative adjectives or descriptors come into her head.

"A miracle. Beautiful—it made me feel purposeful." Is all she says. Andi, pleased with this answer continues to do her assignment. Bex is tired. She goes to ruffle her daughter's hair before going to take a nap. She had business reports to finish regarding client's booking but right now all she could think of was her bed.

Andi remained in her spot, doing her homework diligently.

xxX

Cyrus sat on his bed, scrolling on his laptop through various news and gossip sites. He had already finished his homework and was super bored. He knew that Buffy was probably napping (and didn't want to wake her) and he had already talked with Andi for hours before she whined about needing to start her homework. So, he scrolled through juicy tabloids to quell his interest. His curiosity was disturbed by a light knock on the door, and his stepmother opens the barricade gently and respectfully. The boy smiles casually.

"Hey, honey. Someone is here to see you." She informs and Cyrus is confused on who it could be. "Marty?" she asks. He nods and is going over his thoughts as to what could be the cause for the impromptu visit. Then he remembers Buffy's birthday is coming up and grins a Cheshire grin.

"Oh, cool." He responds easily, and his step mom moves aside to reveal Marty, who nods in respect to the psychologist and steps into the other teenage boy's room.

"What's up?" Cyrus is still super curious as to why the young athlete was visiting. But he had a clue.

"I'm just chilling, thankful tests are over for a while."

"Until midterms of course." Both boys shake their heads, not excited for the thought of cramming for the exams. Marty clears his throat. "So, about Buffy." Cyrus is trying really hard to hide his tickled grin now. Buffy was so oblivious it hurt. "I have no idea what to get her. For her birthday." He leans against the other boy's dresser, but not before glancing at a picture of a young Cyrus at an elephant themed birthday party.

"Well, Buffy is honestly really hard to shop for. Gifts are a hit or miss with her." He starts, and Marty nods understandingly.

"Well what types of things do you get Iris?" Marty asks but then blushes and attempts to mend his misplaced statement. Cyrus is trying so hard right now. "N-not that it's the same, because well you and Iris date and me and Buffy—anyway-" he rambles nervously and Cyrus puts a hand on his shoulder.

"I got you man. Trust me, we'll have you getting Buffy a perfect gift. But it has to be something that fits the bond you guys have; as athletes, as rivals almost. Always competing with eachother but also encouraging eachother." Marty nods.

"Oh, like a pair of running shoes?" _Boring._ Cyrus thinks this inwardly but then sits back on his bed, in thought.

"Well, something sporty like that. Buffy could always appreciate a new pair of Nikes." He says more to himself. Marty sighs, conflicted.

"But I don't want this to be just _any_ gift. I want it to be something she'll like for a long time, something she can brag about or that _I_ can brag about because I got it for her." The less athletic of the two wants to roll his eyes because of how similar they are. Since forever it seems like Marty and Buffy have had this weird rivalry. They were basically the same person: competitive, bossy, and fearless. The traits he lacked he found in his friends. Andi's levelheaded attitude, Buffy's fierce determination, they really were the perfect trio that balanced eachother out.

Regarding Buffy and Marty, he was surprised they hadn't ended up together by now. They train together, and sometimes Marty would tag along with them to The Spoon and on Cyrus' days off Happy Spoon, which is owned by the earlier mentioned business. They go to eachother's games, and even though Buffy claimed it wasn't just to see Marty and to 'support the school and build morale' he noticed she would cheer a little louder whenever Marty assisted or made a point. They even went to the eighth grade formal together. Cyrus grins at this memory.

" _This dress is dumb." A fourteen year old Beatrice stands in Andi's mirror and is checking herself out. Her curly hair was slicked back into a neat bun with some curly strands framing her face, her lashes were long and thick, her lips glossed and eyebrows done. Andi wore light makeup as well, and had just gotten in a better mood. The entire week she was upset that her and Jonah weren't going to the prestigious and ever important 8_ _th_ _grade formal together, but as the date got closer and the girls went dress shopping there was more exciement._

" _Oh shut up, you look great Buffy." Andi sported a head of wand curls, and glitter over her eyelids. Cece didn't want either of the girls wearing heavy makeup but Bex made sure they had a little pizazz so they would stand out at the dance. "And Marty is going to like it." Buffy blushed and crossed her arms._

" _I-I don't care if he likes my dress or not." Cyrus, who looked handsome in black dress slacks and a white shirt with a deep green tie, chuckled in disbelief._

" _Yeah, sure." Buffy changes the subject._

" _Yeah, well what about you Cyrus? Aren't you even a little upset you aren't going with Iris?"_

Cyrus remembers that night. He wasn't sad or disappointed at all.

" _Well, no." he says without a beat or pause. "She is much older than us after all. I assumed she wouldn't want to go." Is all he says and both girls believe him. It was true—he was just glad he could go with his two best friends. Buffy shrugged and looked at herself in the mirror again. She felt odd wearing one, and even more out of body since this dress highlighted exactly that—new curves she had gained somehow and never noticed. The dress was a deep red that Cyrus said complimented her undertones (which he and Andi definitely read in magazine) and made her tan stand out. It was knee length and had spaghetti straps. The neckline went straight across. It was a simple but appropriate dress. Andi of course found a plain dress and added more to it: patches, a sash, and even studs. Her plain black dress gained a denim sash, various patches of fabric on the skirt that ended just above her knees. The dress was off the shoulder, and she sewed studs across the neckline which matched her small earrings. It was truly a dress that screamed "Andi"._

" _Andi! Your friend is here!" Bex called down the hall_.

Both Cyrus and Marty can remember that night. Marty remembers seeing Buffy all dressed up and stuttering over his words during their usual teasing. That night was fun.

Cyrus is back to the present. He knew that Marty liked Buffy. He knew that Buffy liked Marty back. She just didn't knew it. Considering that his stepmother was a psychologist, he had picked up on people reading skills she would tell him about. How to tell what people are subliminally feeling. Cyrus was reading both of the clueless athletes so easily, like a worn book. He wanted to intervene and give them a push but he knew when the time was right things would sort themselves out. They would eventually end up together.

He was sort of a hypocrite, though. In fact, the hypocrisy would probably be _delicious_ to Buffy. Here is Cyrus, a gay boy completely in the closet who has a crush on her best friend's boyfriend telling someone to come out about their feelings.

 _Mine is different though._ Buffy wouldn't get stoned if she told the world (or especially Marty) if she came out and confessed her love. Wrote a love note. Cyrus tried to think of something less corny and more Buffy-like. He imagines Marty after one of the winning games, sweaty and victorious and Buffy walking up to him to congratulate him, but instead kissing him. He imagines Buffy driving to Marty's house because she misses her mom and spending time with him.

Weird things like that is how people figure out they like eachother. His wandering mind is placed back on track, the present day, when Marty snaps.

"Perfect! I know exactly what I'll get her. She'll love it." He pats Cyrus on his back who is confused since he didn't contribute at all, in his eyes anyway. "Thanks, man. So, see you at the party?"

"I _will_ be there." He walks his friend to the door and closes the door after Marty gets in his car and drives off. He sighs and walks back to his room. The whole conversation showed him qualities he never realized about _himself._ He never felt bad before for keeping one of the hugest secrets of his life, and he wouldn't start now.

He just wished he could spill.

xxx

In the driveway at his home, Marty is not surprised that no one is home. He enters the quiet and empty home, it was almost a routine. He goes to the kitchen and sees a note on the fridge that was also there three weeks ago. His father didn't bother to write a new one.

 _Be home late, make yourself some dinner. Study hard, bud._

Marty finally crumples up the note and tosses it in the trash can. The unnamed dog, who was sleeping upstairs, heard his owner return and released a wail-like bark that wildly welcomed home Marty, and earned a grin.

He opens his room door and is greeted by a ball of fur, jumping up to his owner and running in circles around him.

"Hey, boy! Had a good day?" the dog barks healthily again and sits, his tongue out and Marty concludes this means yes. He clips on his leash and changes into his old running shoes so the dog could go out. It's more like the puppy is walking Marty, though. He wanted the walk to go as quickly as possible so that he could get home and order Buffy's gift. He didn't know exactly why he felt so pressured to by her a good gift, or maybe nervous perhaps. _She better be lucky I'm getting her anything._ He thinks this, but with a feigned dismissive attitude because he really wanted to get Buffy something good. Not only to be a good friend, but also so he could rub it in her face, how great and amazing he is.

Once he gets home, he lets the dog loose and doesn't bother grabbing a snack. He races to his laptop and goes to a specific site. He already knows exactly what'll look good on her (not in a weird way, or anything like that). He thinks about Buffy's personality. _Fiery. Competitive. Stubborn, as hell._ She was going to love it. He spends an hour working on her gift before falling asleep, but is awoken by his mother's return home.

Shaking the sleep from his form, he yawns and goes to get the dog, who is now circling around an annoyed but still pleasant Mrs. Chambers.

"Hi my little sugarplum, how was your day? Study hard?" the brunette despised the pet names but preferred his mother over his father nonetheless.

"It was alright." He takes her coat and places it in the coat closet, the puppy jumping around them in excitement. He wasn't exactly secretive but didn't spend much time talking to his parents anymore. He glances down and sees that her tights are gone. This morning she definitely had on sheer tights, and he remembers because she complained about the _damn dog trying to make a run in them_ as said dog leaped at her shins in morning cheer. He wonders how his mom will explain her missing tights, or if his dad will even care at all.

"Oh, Martin, you look like your father when you make that expression, now stop it." She says absently, making her way to the kitchen. "So, what have you decided to name the dog?" she's asked almost every day since they bought the thing. "You oughta hurry, if you wait too long he won't come to any name." Marty doubts this is true but shrugs, not having the energy to debate or even be mildly curious.

"I'm sure I'll figure something out. I just want it to be a good name." he says easily, finally grabbing the forgotten snack. His mom ate fresh fruit and so did he. They were similar in some ways, but different in many others. In highschool his mother was a cheerleader, played volleyball, and only opposed track because she didn't want _chicken legs._ They were both extremely athletic and competitive. Recently, the only competition she was in was with her husband: seeing how fast they could piss one another off (But act like they weren't bothered around Marty). Lookswise they were different. His mother was fair, with fair blonde hair that she wore naturally wavy, sometimes curled with heat, but recently since she started staying out later bone straight with none of its usual ease and playfullness. The apples of her cheeks were always pink hued with excitement and jest, and when she was mad they seemed to turn red. Her eyes were blue. A dark but vibrant and captivating cobalt blue. Marty definitely favored his father with his dark eyes and hair. After a moment, his mother spoke, probably analyzing the same thing.

"You know, you've got your sisters eyes? Didn't get mine or your daddy's." she starts, peeling an orange with birdlike hands. "You got Vanesa's, alright. Down to the eyelashes." She says, then sighs. "The only difference is that when Vanesa was born she was looking at me with those giant, blue things. Looked like candy almost, so blue it was unreal." She delivers, and Marty is attentive. He didn't get to hear about his sister much, it was an extremely difficult subject for his mother and his father, and especially him. She laughs shortly, but not exactly mirthlessly. It isn't the unpleasant forced barking laugh she does while arguing with her husband, either. "Your daddy wanted to name her Blue." She studies her son's incredulous look and grins in confirmation. "That's right, Blue Chambers. And after three hours of labor and an epidural the size of a horse shot I told him there was no way in hell I was naming my beautiful girl Blue." They both laughed because it sounds like something his Georgia-native mother would say. "But I forgot that I had married a businessman from up north. Always got his way, was good at negotiations. The nurse happened to hear our conversation and happened to be a hyper-polyglot, which is a fancy way of saying you can speak lots of languages." She eats some of her now peeled orange. The dog was now relaxed and sat on the cool tile, maybe listening. "She recommended _Sinine._ Which was 'blue,' but in a different language. Russian, I think. Can't remember. But I liked it. So when it was time to name her I looked right at those blue candy eyes and made sure they put _Vanesa Sinine Chambers_ on her certificate."

And that was exactly how it was written on her burial place, too. When he was younger, he always wondered about the significance of the blue flowers and ribbons on her marble grave piece, but never thought to ask. He looks to the dog, and is relaxed and as calm as ever. He hoped he would be responsive to Blue.

 **XXX**

 **Hey yall look who it is**

 **It me**

 **But ANYWAY sorry for this break, school has rly been kicking my behind like it is unreal how much I've had to do. Not to mention stuff in my personal life. Hope you like this chapter. My heart hurts after the sinking of the Muffy ship. Buffy rly messed things up. In my mind they continue though! Best believe! Got me messed ALLL the way up**

 **I should be updating more now**

 **Also hoping there wont be too much retcon or continuity errors because of them introducing Buffy's mom finally. Her name is Pat and her last name is non-hispanic so im hoping shes not hispanic or a latina because I already wrote her as a non-hispanic black. So lets cross our fingers.**

 **Until next chapter. What do yall think marty is getting buffy? Let me know!**

 **-simmy**


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